The Six Flags Magic Mountain (SFMM) Discussion Thread

[DoubleDown]

Puh-puh-puh-leeeeese don't do a dive coaster! I imagine if they do they will probably try to beat Cedar Point's height record...

 

That being said I'd rather have a RMC single rail coaster that's not forceless and has some real airtime!

 

Just curious, have you ridden a dive machine?

 

Yes, I've ridden 2.

 

Chimelong Paradise in China on a business trip which --not surprisingly-- provided much better themeing for their coaster than anything Cedar Point/Magic Mountain has come up with in the past decade, and Sheikra at Busch Gardens, which also did the same.

 

My issue with them is after the initial drop, it's a cookie cutter "dive loop" into the brake run, and experience wise, they are all practically the same. Year 2000+ B&M mediocrity followed by boring meandering through the course to the final brake run.

 

Hey the first drop is great, but I'd rather have a well rounded RMC over an over-designed B&M any day of the week.

[DoinItForTheFame]

. . . but I'd rather have a well rounded RMC over an over-designed B&M any day of the week.

 

I'd rather have a 1,500ft tall Intamin Aqua Trax over an RMC coaster any day. But hey, we don't always get what we want. . .

 

You know. . . Sometimes the parks know what they are doing and *if* SFMM is getting a B&M Dive Machine, I wouldn't be disappointed. B&M Dive Machines are good coasters, and it least it would provide the park with something reliable, and not gimmicky.

[Fire2box]

Screamscape reported "Titan" was trademarked by Six Flags. Since a dive coaster for SFMM is the only rumored coaster for Six Flags right now (not saying it will happen), what do you guys think of the name Titan for a dive coaster?(not saying thats what the name would be) I personally love it since i think this is one of Six Flags's better names and it fits a dive coaster really well. However, I was hoping for a more original name if this indeed turns out to be true.

 

"Titan" fries n shakes. For the DC area because they rebrand one of the old rides to Teen Titans Go! branding to attract the tweens.

[CPTCOASTER]

Puh-puh-puh-leeeeese don't do a dive coaster! I imagine if they do they will probably try to beat Cedar Point's height record...

 

That being said I'd rather have a RMC single rail coaster that's not forceless and has some real airtime!

T-Rex giga please!

 

 

^ I just put that on facebook! Imagine the height & domination of airtime hills that only RMC can bring

[Vonni]

Someone posted several pages back that a Dive Machine really wouldn't make sense with having Superman in the same park. I personally agree with that. A Dive Machine is just not the right coaster for MM. I'd rather see a giga, or a traditional hyper, or a good wooden coaster. There are still so many more options while leaving out a Dive Machine.

[ImNotOneOfYou]

Does anything make the dive coaster rumor any more credible than most other rumors?

[DoinItForTheFame]

Does anything make the dive coaster rumor any more credible than most other rumors?

 

*gasp* A rumor?! This is no rumor! This is confirmed!! It was the word of someones friend, that knows someone, who is friends with someone, who use to know they dip-n-dots guy that use to work at Six Flags Great Adventure, who claims to know everything going on at every Six Flags park. If that's not confirmation, I don't know what is.

[Fire2box]

or a good wooden coaster.

 

whoa now, SFMM had at least two good wooden coasters. They just aged poorly.

[MagicMountainMan]

Does anything make the dive coaster rumor any more credible than most other rumors?

Nope. Simply a fun rumor that gives us something to talk about.

[SoCalJasonland]

or a good wooden coaster.

 

whoa now, SFMM had at least two good wooden coasters. They just aged poorly.

 

If Ghostrider doesn't hold up well at Knott's after the remodel; it may be just time to give up wooden coasters in California. Between the seismic building requirements, frequent earthquakes and our parks' year round operating schedules; they don't make a lot of sense.

[Superbatboy]

I can't help but wonder how Goldstriker will hold up in the next few years.

[singemfrc]

or a good wooden coaster.

 

whoa now, SFMM had at least two good wooden coasters. They just aged poorly.

 

If Ghostrider doesn't hold up well at Knott's after the remodel; it may be just time to give up wooden coasters in California. Between the seismic building requirements, frequent earthquakes and our parks' year round operating schedules; they don't make a lot of sense.

When you say two, which two do you mean, since there were three - Colossus, Psyclone, and Apocalypse. The only one of those that has aged poorly in my opinion is Apocalypse. Psyclone was more or less destroyed by the 94 quake, it just took several more years for the park to realize it.

 

There's a 92 year old wooden coaster sitting on a beach in northern California that's still in great shape and operates nearly all year. Colossus was also still in relatively good shape for how old it was when it was closed too due to the fantastic workmanship used when building it, something it had in common with Giant Dipper.

 

From what I heard on the Ghost Rider "mini tour" at last year's WCB it wasn't exactly the seismic requirements that doomed Ghost Rider, it was the city's overreaction and using far more wood than even the code required that caused the problems.

 

There's also Grizzly at CGA which, though not very exciting, is still in fantastic shape now 30 years old and the other Giant Dipper in San Diego. It went from 1925 to 1976 and then was mostly rebuilt, but it's been running since 1990 and I rode it last year and it was a lot smoother than Apocalypse or Ghost Rider - both built later than it's remodel.

Roar at SFDK was still pretty well before it was converted too. It had a rough first couple drops for a while, but the park had recently retracked it a couple of years ago and the last few rides I had on it were remarkably comfortable for a GCI of its age.

 

I think the California woodie problems are caused more by a combination of bad construction and maintenance/preservation that isn't aggressive enough. In this, I think you're right - building and maintaining a wooden coaster in California isn't impossible, but perhaps the parks don't realize how much they are biting off when they build one. The coaster I'm really curious to study the aging of is Gold Striker. I'm curious to see what it's like in the next 5 or 10 years.

[mark549]

or a good wooden coaster.

 

whoa now, SFMM had at least two good wooden coasters. They just aged poorly.

 

If Ghostrider doesn't hold up well at Knott's after the remodel; it may be just time to give up wooden coasters in California. Between the seismic building requirements, frequent earthquakes and our parks' year round operating schedules; they don't make a lot of sense.

 

 

Perhaps a problem for wood coasters in California is the long dry summer that dries out the structure and track. Most wood coasters are in places where it rains during the time the parks are open which probably keeps the wood more flexible.

 

It was a shock to see how quickly TermiApocalypse degenerated from a great ride to a terrible ride.

 

Glad that Twisted Colossus is great - the ERT at West Coast Bash was probably my favorite coaster riding experience, ever.

[coasterlvr]

 

From what I heard on the Ghost Rider "mini tour" at last year's WCB it wasn't exactly the seismic requirements that doomed Ghost Rider, it was the city's overreaction and using far more wood than even the code required that caused the problems.

 

 

i wonder if this is really true or just a guess. cause i haven't seen them skin it down any. i do know it does have a ton of wood in the structure though, not doubting that.

[DoubleDown]

From what I heard on the Ghost Rider "mini tour" at last year's WCB it wasn't exactly the seismic requirements that doomed Ghost Rider, it was the city's overreaction and using far more wood than even the code required that caused the problems.

 

Just wondering how more wood could cause problems?

 

Logical reasoning would suggest more wood would cause less problems because it's built well beyond what is necessary.

 

I think what caused Ghost Rider the most problems was the elaborate track configuration, insane airtime with positive lateral and vertical G-force movements, and super clunky heavy trains. Which to be honest after 15 years, with old technology from 1999, you have to expect over time it's just going to get rough. I remember riding during the early days and wondering, "How can this ride possibly continue to run this way as the years go on without doing some serious wear and tear?" The track just wasn't designed to do RMC-esque elements, with pre-2000 technology.

 

As far as Magic Mountains wood coasters, I think it comes down to maintenance. It requires a lot of money to maintain a wood coaster, and they just aren't willing to do it. They're more of a "put it in and let it run" type of company, so a lot of their wood coasters have taken the brunt of that approach.

Edited February 28, 2016 by DoubleDown

[coasterlvr]

From what I heard on the Ghost Rider "mini tour" at last year's WCB it wasn't exactly the seismic requirements that doomed Ghost Rider, it was the city's overreaction and using far more wood than even the code required that caused the problems.

 

Just wondering how more wood could cause problems?

 

Logical reasoning would suggest more wood would cause less problems because it's built well beyond what is necessary.

 

the thinking was, it didn't sway, so it ripped itself apart. i'm no engineer, so i really don't know.

[Jew]

Keep in mind that NONE of the CCI's have held up well without extensive work done to them....

 

Basically, you got what you paid for with CCI.

[ZeroGravity55]

From what I heard on the Ghost Rider "mini tour" at last year's WCB it wasn't exactly the seismic requirements that doomed Ghost Rider, it was the city's overreaction and using far more wood than even the code required that caused the problems.

 

Just wondering how more wood could cause problems?

 

Logical reasoning would suggest more wood would cause less problems because it's built well beyond what is necessary.

 

the thinking was, it didn't sway, so it ripped itself apart. i'm no engineer, so i really don't know.

 

This.

 

Ghostrider was supported with way more bents than what was really needed. Because of this, there was no give in the structure which led to the track taking a hell of a beating.

[SFMMGeek27]

Just got to SFMM. It's 11:20 and already parked in dirt overflow. Gonna be a long day.

[VTown661]

Just got to SFMM. It's 11:20 and already parked in dirt overflow. Gonna be a long day.

 

I'm sure you and some of your posse have the meal deal so one of you will need to sacrifice a ride and go get all the grub while the others ride. Did they get the stripes down in the dirt lot in time (sort of like baseball lines) or just roll with the cones?

[Arthur_Seaton]

the thinking was, it didn't sway, so it ripped itself apart. i'm no engineer, so i really don't know.

 

That's weird. One night, a group of friends and I stood and watched it sway like crazy. I think I might even have video footage of it somewhere. The turnaround over by Beach Blvd. sways like mad — Rattler-style. You can really see it at night when the track's lit up, both when the train goes over the top and when it runs through the structure before hitting the bunny hops.

 

With that said, the turns where it does feel like the structure is ripping itself up are buried deeper within the ride — specifically that undulating turn after the mid-course drop. Perhaps because that part of the track is low to the ground and stuck within a larger set of supports, there's less possibility to sway there and therefore more track shredding?

 

I get the sense that some of the same problem exists on Apocalypse in that some of the most brutal parts of that ride happen when it's close to the cement with less flex in the structure. For example, the big figure-8 after the station fly-through can be brutal, possibly because the supporting structure is lower so there's less wood to flex. But also, if you consider some of the highly banked turns on the ride (after the first tunnel, for example), it actually handles those quite well with less shuffling. I'm no engineer either, but I can't help but think that the turns at the bottom of Ghost Rider's mid-course drop would benefit from some extreme, borderline 90-degree banking, closer to what Apocalypse has on that particular section?

[MagicMountainMan]

Apparently today is a bring a friend free day, so naturally the Magic Mountain Parkway offramp was backed up into the freeway...

 

Edit: Park just announced it's at capacity and hours have been extended. They also added a few extra BAFF days next week. Overall a pretty insane day to be at the park.

[coneyislandchris]

Apparently today is a bring a friend free day, so naturally the Magic Mountain Parkway offramp was backed up into the freeway...

 

Edit: Park just announced it's at capacity and hours have been extended. They also added a few extra BAFF days next week. Overall a pretty insane day to be at the park.

 

Yeah, looks like (according to the website)...

 

Select Sundays – valid January 31 or February 28 -- *Due to the parking lot reaching capacity on Sunday, February 28, we will be extending the Free Friend offer for the day to now include your choice March 6, 13, or 20.

[coasterlvr]

Apparently today is a bring a friend free day, so naturally the Magic Mountain Parkway offramp was backed up into the freeway...

 

Edit: Park just announced it's at capacity and hours have been extended. They also added a few extra BAFF days next week. Overall a pretty insane day to be at the park.

 

that's cool. i got there at 10:15 or so. left at 1:15ish. rode TC once and left. it was nuts. the backup was down to the fwy. even when i got off the fwy in the morning it was backed up onto the fwy.

 

also, there's some cheerleading stuff going on as well as the bring a friend.

[coasterlvr]